Hostage
by NMTD
Summary: Zoro believed that nothing would get in the way of him spending the rest of his life with the blond... until Zeff is taken hostage, forcing Sanji to make a choice.


**A/N:**

**I dreamed of this a few weeks ago, and it's been bugging me since, so here it is. I still feel like there are plot holes in the premise, but I can't put my finger on it. If you see anything that doesn't sound right, let me know, and I'll see if I can fix it in the following chapters.**

**Just a heads up, this is my first attempt at angst, so if you're expecting the crew to somehow help solve this whole problem, probably not gonna happen for a long time.**

* * *

**Hostage Chapter 1**

It's been three hours since Sanji left. The blond insisted that Zoro stays home and waits, saying he doesn't want to worry about a marimo getting lost and causing trouble in the base of a mafia boss. The swordsman forcefully stops himself from pacing another round in the dark and sits down on the couch. If he doesn't call for one more hour, Zoro's going in to find the blond himself.

He reflexively stands at the sound of the door lock being turned. The cook has his head down as he closes the door behind him and slips to the floor. A million questions hang on the tip of the swordsman's tongue, but he bites them down and walks over to join the blond on the floor.

"Zeff wasn't there. The bastard hid him. Even Robin can't find any traces." Sanji finally chokes out, his golden locks spilling out between long fingers and onto his knees.

"Nami's putting the money together now."

"He doesn't want money." The cook's ever steady hands visibly shake.

"There must be something he wants." Zoro says in a desperate effort to comfort the blond. He hates stating the obvious, but it's better than drilling Sanji with questions at the moment. Instead of relaxing, the blond twitches and grips his hair with greater force.

The swordsman holds out a tentative hand over Sanji's shoulders. The lack of protest is a sign of the cook's distraught state. Zoro pulls him closer and looks away as the blond wails.

* * *

The next morning, Zoro finds the cook sitting at the dining table lost in thought, an unlit cigarette held between his fingers forgotten. He's still wearing the dress shirt from yesterday, all wrinkled and dirty.

Without a word, the swordsman walks around the blond to turn on the coffee machine. Sanji doesn't function well without coffee in the morning on normal days, and this is not a normal day. It's the first time he's seen the blond cry himself to sleep in all the years they've been together, and considering his ego, Zoro wouldn't be surprised at all if this is the first time since he learned to walk.

The swordsman takes his seat beside the cook. Sanji gives him a sideways glance and goes back to staring at the table, his one visible eye red and swollen. Zoro reaches over and feels his forehead with the back of two fingers, and the blond bats his hand away with an irritated eyeroll. Great, at least that part of him is still functional.

"Does Luffy know?" The swordsman breaks the silence. Sanji shakes his head and jabs his still unlit cigarette in the ash tray.

"I don't want to worry about restraining him."

"Maybe he has the right idea-"

"No shithead, Zeff loses a finger each time we attack."

Zoro swallows thickly. They always have a chance if it's a matter of pure violence. Luffy is a bringer of miracles in that regard. But not this time. Their hands are tied this time.

"What does Crocodile want with a retired old man like Zeff anyway?" The swordsman runs his fingers through his short hair. The cook doesn't reply for a few seconds.

"Zoro..." The swordsman looks up to find him biting his lip. They rarely call each other's names, so this must be serious.

"We have to break up."

Zoro frowns and studies the man in front of him. If this was a few years back, he would've jumped to conclusions, packed his things, and left the blond with a heated "Suite yourself". He would've drowned himself in alcohol and decided that the blond simply didn't have enough faith in him. In fact, that's precisely what happened a couple of times in the past. But now that they're inching closer to their 30s, they both learned a few things along the way.

"Tell me what he said to you."

Sanji lets out a breathy sigh and leans back in his seat.

"His rival, Big Mom, is planning a political marriage for one of her daughters. He... wants to stop it."

"So he wants us to crash a wedding for him."

"No..." The blond runs a hand through his hair. "He wants the girl to refuse the marriage herself. He wants ME to..."

"Woo her." Zoro finishes dryly. "Shouldn't be too hard for you, Love Cook. Just go and get it done. I can wait."

"It's not a one-time job, shithead." Sanji's visible eye meets his for the first time this morning. The hopelessness in it makes Zoro's chest pinch. "I might have to keep her busy indefinitely."

A minute or two passes before Zoro speaks again.

"There must be another way. He just wants the marriage called off, right? We could kill the girl."

"What? No we-"

"O-or... find the groom's side and spread some rumours."

"No one knows who they are."

"And why does it have to be you anyway?"

"Crocodile hears that she likes blonds."

"Well that makes it easy. I bet Duval would love the opportunity."

The blond gives him a pointed look, but fails to suppress a chuckle when he sees the smirk on the swordsman's face. He takes out another cigarette and lights it, shaking his head slightly.

"The old man's life is in his hands. It has to be me."

"You can't be fine with being the bastard's puppet for life."

"I still HAVE my life because of Zeff. I have to." The cook exhales a long stream of smoke. "And there's no way you'd be fine with polygamy..."

"Neither would you."

"Right, so..."

Zoro hears the unspoken request loud and clear. This is the end. Just leave.

Another minute of silence.

"You won't be able to do it alone." He says with the same defiance that Sanji has shown him many times in the past.

"I HAVE to." The blond shoots him a glare.

"She's female. You'll drive yourself insane trying to lie to her face 24/7." He stands his ground in the glaring match. "You need a place to dump your garbage."

Sanji's facial expression softens. Moisture starts gathering at the corner of the visible blue eye before he looks away.

"I can't do that to you."

"I WANT to, Cook." The blue eye meets his with hesitance. Zoro slips a hand under the blond locks, and when he feels no resistance, he gently puts their foreheads together. "Don't shut me out."

"You'll regret it one day, shitty Marimo." Sanji whispers.

"I won't. I promise."

If it's for this man, Zoro can do anything with no regret.


End file.
